Capricornus

Capricornus is an extremely intrusive adware program that is somewhat harder to remove than other applications of similar profile. On the other hand, nothing is impossible, so we will tell you how to get rid of this program. Scroll down to the bottom of this description for the manual removal instructions, and you will be able to get rid of Capricornus in no time. However, keep in mind that adware programs tend to travel in packs, so you should seriously consider scanning your system with a licensed antispyware tool before this situation falls out of hand. Do all you can to protect your system from harm.

It is easy to know that your computer has been compromised by the likes of Capricornus. When you access online shopping websites, you will be spammed with various pop-ups and notifications that offer you to purchase something or install additional software on your computer. For example, when we opened walmart.com, Capricornus “said” that the content we wanted to see required a flash player Update, and then it offered to install the update at once. Naturally, when you see such suggestions labeled with “Powered by Capricornus” tagline, you should know better than to click them. There is no telling where you could land after clicking such an ad.

According to our research specialists, Capricornus is similar to Jabuticaba, Daugava, Canopus, and other adware applications from the same group. These programs are highly annoying because they modify specific system settings in a way that even removing the program via Control Panel does not help much. The program remains in your computer and it continues tracking your online activity for financial purposes. Of course, we are not trying to say that Capricornus is an extremely dangerous computer security threat, but an adware application that obnoxious should not be tolerated.

One of the most important things that users affected by adware apps should realize is that they do not enter your system surreptitiously. The thing is that you have installed Capricornus on your computer yourself. Now, you may not have been aware of that, but the program does not have a direct distribution source, and it means that it cannot be downloaded from a specific website. Thus, just as our security researchers point out, Capricornus comes bundled with freeware. Freeware applications can be downloaded from multiple websites out there. Whenever you open a page that distributes third-party applications, you have to keep in mind that the third-party installers often carry more than one application.

This way, unsuspecting users install Capricornus on their computers and the program releases its payload. Judging from the research and the programs from the same family we have dealt with previously, Capricornus can modify your DNS settings, which is practically like modifying your phone book. DNS vulnerability issues are often exploited by cyber criminals for phishing, so it would not be unheard of if this adware program redirected you to a fake website without you even realizing it. Normally, adware programs do not do that, but this is Capricornus we are talking about it.

What’s more, this program also affects the Windows Sockets API or Winsock for short. This specification “tells” Windows network software how to access network services, which is mostly associated with the Internet protocol suit or the TCP/IP. To put it simply, Capricornus affects your Internet security settings, and it can easily expose you to dangerous third-party content that might be promoted by malware developers. That is not to say that Capricornus is there to distribute malware. Adware programs are there to make money for their creators by redirecting you to affiliated websites.

The problem is that Capricornus and other similar applications do not bother checking the third-party sites they redirect you to. Hence, these adware apps can be easily exploited by cyber criminals for corrupted content promotion and malware distribution. Therefore, you should not waste any of your time and remove this application at once.

You will have to remove Capricornus via Control Panel, and then follow the instructions below to restore your DNS settings. After that, you will have to reset the Winsock settings too, but that is not too complicated if you follow the guidelines step by step. Finally, you should also scan your computer with the SpyHunter free scanner to determine what other unwanted applications are running on your system. Please keep in mind that an automatic software removal is always the most efficient option when you need to keep your computer safe and clean.

Manual Capricornus Removal

Windows 8 & Windows 8.1 & Windows 10

1. Press the Windows key + R and the Run command box will pop up.
2. Type “control panel” into the Open box and press OK.
3. Go to Uninstall a program and remove Capricornus.

Windows Vista & Windows7

1. Click the Start button and select Control Panel.
2. Open Uninstall a program and remove Capricornus.

Windows XP

1. Click the Start menu and navigate to Control Panel.
2. Select Add or remove programs and uninstall Capricornus.

How to Restore Your DNS Settings

Windows 8 & Windows 8.1 & Windows 10

1. Press the Windows key + R and the Run command box will pop up.
2. Type “control panel” into the Open box and press OK.
3. Click Network and Internet and open Network and Sharing Center.
4. Click your connection type (Local Area Connection).
5. Click Properties on the pop-up box.
6. Highlight Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) in the next box and choose Properties.
7. Select the Obtain DNS server address automatically option and click OK.
8. Click OK and exit the menu.

Windows Vista & Windows 7

1. Open the Start menu and navigate to Control Panel.
2. Select Network and Internet and go to Network and Sharing Center.
3. Click the connection type (Local Area Connection).
4. Open Properties and highlight Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4).
5. Click Properties and select Obtain DNS Server address automatically.
6. Press OK, click OK once again and exit the menu.

Windows XP

1. Open the Start menu and go to Control Panel.
2. Go to Network Connections.
3. Right-click the active connection and select Properties.
4. Highlight Internet Protocol on the pop-up box.
5. Open Properties and select Obtain DNS Server automatically.
6. Click OK to save changes.

How to Reset Winsock

1. Press the Windows key + R and the Run command box will open.
2. Type cmd and click OK.
3. Type netsh winsock reset and press Enter.
4. Exit the Command Prompt.

Restore dnsapi.dll

1. Press Win+R for the Run command box to appear.
2. Type cmd and click OK to run the Command Prompt.
3. Type sfc /scanfile=C:\Windows\system32\dnsapi.dll and press Enter.
4. For a 64-bit system, type sfc /scanfile=C:\Windows\syswow64\dnsapi.dll and press Enter.
5. Exit the Command Prompt.